


Yesterday and Five (Non) Years Between

by Diary



Category: Black Panther (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Adult Shuri (Marvel), Bechdel Test Pass, Canon Divergence - Post-Avengers (2012), Condoms, Dinner, F/M, Female-Male Friendship, Grief/Mourning, Late Night Conversations, Lesbian Ayo (Marvel), Love, Minor Nakia (Black Panther)/T'Challa, POV Everett Ross, Queen Shuri (Marvel), Recovery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-28
Updated: 2019-11-28
Packaged: 2021-02-18 07:17:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21590614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Diary/pseuds/Diary
Summary: AU. A look at Everett Ross after he's returned from being dusted with one night soon after of him and Shuri coming together. Complete.
Relationships: Everett Ross/Shuri
Comments: 2
Kudos: 39





	Yesterday and Five (Non) Years Between

There is no Yesterday, but it feels like it.

Yesterday, his cousin’s baby was barely three-months old, and today, she’s five years old. She’s said her first word, crawled, taken her first step, and is now allergic to butterflies (knowing what he knows of her godfather, it’s likely best to not ask how this discovery was made). His cousin has sent pictures, videos, and audio clips that have been carefully saved, but it’s not the same as getting texts, emails, and phone calls when it happens.

“Welcome back, sir.”

An agent he vaguely remembers as this young wide-eyed newbie salutes him. Still young, but there’s no wide eyes or subtly tentative movements.

I didn’t do anything, he’s tempted to say, but then, all the people who weren’t here for over five years of yesterdays deserve some sort of acknowledgement.

“Thank you.” He returns the salute.

He was sitting in the middle of a briefing what feels like five minutes ago, and then, earlier today, he was standing inside the building three floors away from the briefing room.

…

He has no apartment.

His stuff as been put in storage.

Many aren’t so lucky. Yesterday, they had a home, they had possessions, they had dental and health insurance, they had hard-earned careers, and now, they have none of that.

Some will recover, and some won’t.

Worse, some had husbands, wives, sisters, brothers, sons and daughters, grandparents, uncles and aunts, nieces and nephews, godparents, best friends, and now, they don’t.

Everyone salutes him. There’s been _clapping_. Everyone acts as if he did something heroic rather than went missing in the middle of a briefing and reappeared five years later.

He’s been given a cot in the building’s infirmary. He’s been put on a list for housing. People look at him when he eats his meals normally.

Yesterday that was five years ago, he had a normal breakfast followed by a normal lunch. He’s not been starved, and he hasn’t been unbearably craving any particular food.

…

He sleeps fine.

It’s been traumatic finding out five years have passed in what feels like five minutes, but wherever he was, he doesn’t have any memories. There’s nothing, from what he gathered, that was traumatic to him during those five years.

His new boss says, “Agent Ross, you’re going to have a visitor tomorrow.”

If there is a tomorrow, goes through his head.

“Yes, ma’am. Who?”

“Queen Shuri will be...”

He tries to listen, but his mind goes into a tailspin.

‘Queen’, not ‘Princess’.

The day before yesterday that was five years ago, Shuri was a bright-eyed, sarcastic teenage Princess that he owed his ability to walk and possibly life to. Her big brother was King T’Challa, Black Panther, a good man who was shaping up to be a good leader.

A file has been given to him, and he sees King T’Challa was among those taken by Thanos’ Strike. Princess Shuri ascended the throne, and almost two years later, she was the new Black Panther. No one is sure how or when the Wakandas came into possession of more heart-shaped herbs, but it has been definitively established they are, in fact, now in possession of them again.

The Avengers are all alive and accounted for. Scarlet Witch and Falcon were victims of the strike. One of their allies, Doctor Strange, was, too, and Scott Lang disappeared for five years but was eventually discovered to not be one of the victims. Pepper Potts and James Barnes were among the loved ones taken by the strike.

…

His therapist seems overworked.

“I’m adjusting. I went out this morning, bought a cup of coffee, and talked to several people. What Thanos did was horrible, and I feel terribly for all the other victims. But I’m not personally suffering that much. I’m sad I didn’t know about my baby cousin going from a baby to a little girl as it happened. I’d rather be in my apartment than sleeping on a cot in an empty office. And what I really want is to be cleared for active duty. My reflexes are still good, and I’ve been trained in recognising potential mental illness in people and de-escalation.”

“You aren’t angry?”

“No. I’ve been attacked before, and I can honestly say I was never angry at the attackers. They needed to be stopped, occasionally, civilians or people on my side needed to be saved, and I focused on doing what needed to be done. Thanos is dead. There might be someone as bad as or worse than him someday, and there might not be. If there is, assuming I don’t end up dead or whatever exactly his strike did again, I’ll try to do whatever is necessary to stop them.”

Dr Peters nods. “There are rare individuals who are able to consistently handle high-pressure situations that would traumatise most other people as well as you have in the past. The world likely would have been better if you hadn’t been one of those taken in the strike. However, I’m concerned that you might not seek help if, after some time, you do begin experiencing trauma.”

“I’ve never gone into any assignment that I didn’t fully believe I could handle,” he says. “Even when the risks were extremely high, I’ve always gone in believing I could beat them. But uh, it was never brash, reckless arrogance. I was healthy, I had training, I had plans and backups. If I wasn’t in the best possible condition, I didn’t go into anything dangerous that I didn’t absolutely have to.”

“I’ll put you on probation, but I want to do, at least, three more sessions with you.”

Repressing a sigh, he says, “Thank you, doctor.”

…

He’s going over paperwork in his new office when there’s a knock on the door.

Looking up, he sees his boss has brought-

Standing, he greets, “Queen Shuri.”

The Dora Milaje eye him warily, and he wonders what it means that Okoye isn’t among them.

He watches Shuri and his boss talking, and part of him can still see the grinning teenager he knew only a few days that are actually five years ago. Mostly, though, that girl is gone, and this woman he doesn’t particularly know is standing in her place.

Princess Shuri enlisted him in helping to save her country, his, and numerous others. They travelled through snow together. She embarrassed him with glee on his birthday.

Queen Shuri is a beautiful woman, but he misses the sparkle her eyes used to have. He hopes it occasionally reappears, that it’s not permanently gone.

Smiling over at him, she gives an almost tentative nod, and he can’t imagine seeing this back when she was seventeen. “Hello, Ross.”

“Would you like Agent Ross to give you a tour of the building, your majesty?”

“Yes, thank you,” Shuri answers.

…

There’s more saluting in addition to the bows, and Shuri comments, “Well, this is new.”

Based on the beautifully playful glint to her eyes, she’s talking about the former, and he warns, “Don’t start.”

She laughs, and as wonderful as the sound is, something raw inside him almost makes him shiver.

“Would it be okay if I asked how your brother is doing?”

The sudden vulnerability to her expression makes him wonder if the answer is, ‘No.’

“T’Challa is doing well; he and Nakia returned standing side-by-side. I don’t know if you’ve been told yet, but our mother passed away three years ago. For all- M’Baku was a great help during her sickness. He became a true friend to her. T’Challa’s on a pilgrimage to pay his respects. Soon, he will retake his place as Black Panther and King.”

“No, I didn’t know. I’m very sorry for your loss, your majesty.”

“She witnessed my taking of the Black Panther mantle. It was never what she wanted for me, but she died knowing Wakanda would remain strong.”

They get to one of the break rooms, and trying to lighten the mood, he says, “I’m going to have to ask you to please not blow up any of the microwaves here.”

“Fixing that hotel’s absurdly slow Wi-Fi didn’t cause the microwave to explode! That was the doing of another patron that they unfairly blamed on me.”

“I know you had nothing to do with that microwave exploding, your highness. I just don’t believe that you intentionally exploding a microwave is something that you would be above doing.”

She considers this for a moment. “That’s fair. I promise I won’t explode any of the microwaves here.”

“Thank you. That’s very appreciated. Is Okoye with T’Challa?”

“Yes. Oh, and I’m a godmother now. Here, I have pictures!” Tugging a small bead off one of her braids, she shakes it, and holographs of Okoye, W’Kabi, and a little girl appear.

“She’s beautiful.”

“Her name is N’Yami.”

“I’m glad she has you. And also, in about fifteen years, I’m going to need to update some agencies about the newest non-lethal pain in our ass in play.”

Giving him an offended look, she scoffs. “Fifteen years? She’s going to have all these old, white leaders of the world quaking by the time she’s twelve. She’s already speaking four languages.”

“Good for her. Xhosa, English, I presume? And what else?”

“Xhosa sign language and a combination of ASL and BANZSL.”

“So, really, about five or six, then?”

“I guess so,” she responds with a soft, proud look.

It’s how he often feels when he thinks of his baby cousin.

She’s learning sign language, too. She’s in karate, and last year, she was Queen Valkyrie of Asgard for Halloween.

He knows Thor is presumed alive but off-planet and that a large group of refugees from a destroyed Asgard have settled on Earth, but he doesn’t know if Thor has gotten married or if this Queen Valkyrie is someone from Asgard’s past.

“Ready to continue?”

She nods.

…

After the tour, they have lunch.

“I feel as if I should have more loyalty to my President.”

“He wasn’t yours, and he wasn’t good for this country. Besides, I only taught him a lesson; it’s not as if I physically hurt him or put him in danger.”

“Technically, even with me being gone, he was mine. Or at least, until he was impeached.”

That, he feels, shouldn’t exactly count. Before this one, America had two impeached Presidents, but where one resigned, the other managed to stay in office. This President, he wasn’t even elected to the office of President; he took office after the plane carrying the President crashed due to everyone else on the plane being dusted (God, he feels almost unbearable sympathy for the people on that plane who’ve come back, especially the pilot) and the Vice-President was one of the victims of the strike.

And this one was good at the job he had before he was thrust into the presidency.

“Your country and Wakanda are proving to be better allies than my father and mother would have ever believed possible, Ross, but there are times when you have unworthy people in the highest positions of the country.”

He definitely can’t argue with that.

“And while my brother was trying his best to learn proper diplomacy, I- didn’t learn it very well.”

Wondering if he should argue, he finishes his food.

She did, is the thing. What she did to the former President- well, there’s a reason he feels he should have more loyalty towards the man. Otherwise, though, from what he’s seen, she’s become a mature, thoughtful young woman who can reign her teasing in when necessary.

“Look, Shuri- I wish T’Challa hadn’t been taken. But if it was a choice, I’m glad it was him and not you. I don’t know if he could have found the strength you did if he’d lost you.”

“Of course, he would have,” is the dismissive reply. “What about you? Did anyone important lose you?”

“No.”

He doesn’t know why she gives him such a surprised look. He’d almost think it was comical, except, he can tell she’s genuinely unbalanced.

“Most of the non-Klan members of my family are dead. My cousin with the daughter, he and I talked on the phone occasionally, but we’ve never really been close. I highly doubt any of the racist hicks who joined an unrecognised terrorist organisation would have taken the news that their CIA, largely left-leaning relative was dusted poorly.”

Her shrug concedes that point. “But you don’t have any close friends? Any romantic relationships?”

“I’ve always been more focused on my job more than anything.”

He’s wanted close friendships, relationships that consisted of more than casual sex when they were in the same area, but these are areas he’s never been good in. He was always too focused on the next mission, the next assignment, to truly focus on the people who were willing to try to be part of his life in such ways. With co-workers and allies, it’s easy to remember who likes what, who’s allergic to what, and enough to make everyday small-talk, but other relationships require knowing much more intimate things, and this knowledge cannot often be used in the same way it can with co-workers and allies.

“I don’t imagine that will change even after all this,” she comments.

“No, I don’t imagine it will,” he agrees, and to his surprise, there’s a dull ache in his chest.

…

Soon after lunch, it’s time for her to leave.

“I’m going to be in town for the rest of the week. Perhaps, you and I can get dinner somewhere soon. One of them,” she waves towards the Dora Milaje, “will need to come, I promised T’Challa, but I think it’d do us both some good.”

“I volunteer,” Ayo says.

“Not you.” Shuri says something in Xhosa, and he doesn’t understand most of it, but he catches enough to realise-

“There are plenty of places that have vegetarian options,” he offers.

“It’s not that. It’s that she refuses to eat while on-duty.”

“That is not true. You know I am fasting this week, my queen.”

“Yes, and I might have to accept it, but I don’t have to like it.”

The rest of the Dora Milaje is quiet, though, some of them do shift.

“Anyway,” wrapping her hand around his arm, she pulls him away, “we can figure out which one later. What do you say, Ross? Would you like to get dinner with me sometime before I leave?”

“That sounds great.”

…

He’s come to the conclusion humans are never going to recover from what Thanos did.

There are good people, but the xenophobic, the fanatically religious, the simple control freaks, they’ve gained the upper hand by having more than half the Earth’s population vanish, and the fact some of said population has reappeared has done nothing to lessen their hold.

It’ll never be lessened.

He can clearly remember how he felt five years ago. He’d felt there might truly be hope for a better future for his niece and all the other younger people out there. The Avengers initiative was almost completely disbanded (despite all they’ve done, he still doesn’t agree with their formation), SHIELD was under much tighter oversight, and the right people were making plans to deal with alien diplomacy and protection against extraterrestrial forces.

Of course, Nick Fury had to be returned. He couldn’t be one of the very few who wasn’t restored.

Of course, he himself had to be returned to this hopeless world.

Loud, embarrassing music makes him jump, and the tentativeness he has at picking up his phone disappears when he gets a glimpse of the caller ID.

“This is a government-issued phone. You hacking it-”

“I didn’t hack it,” Shuri cheerfully says. “I pickpocketed it before you had it set-up. This is on the ones who issued it for not having better security on it and you for not noticing anything had been done.”

“Fair point.” He writes a reminder on a sticky note to have his phone thoroughly examined and either upgraded or to get a new, more secure one.

“Are you free for dinner tonight?”

“Uh, yes, but I can’t leave the city right now. Are there any restaurants near here that you might like?”

“I have an idea. One that I honestly think you’ll like. I’ll come see you at eight, and we’ll go together?”

“Any particular dress code?”

“Casual,” she says. “No suit and tie.”

“That sounds good.”

…

Shuri and Ayo show up at eight, and obviously, this isn’t a date, but he still feels the urge to kiss the former’s cheek and tell her she looks beautiful. Part of him wishes he had some flowers or other little gift to give her.

She was seventeen a few days ago, he exasperatedly tells himself. Even if there’s five years where she’s grown physically and matured, for you it was less than a week that she was King T’Challa’s literal kid sister.

She truly is beautiful, though. He still hasn’t figured out enough about Wakandan culture to know what casual vs dressy is for most of them. She’d been wearing what he assumes were normal Wakandan clothes when she’d visited yesterday, but now, she has on a gorgeous dress with a full spectrum of colours from the rainbow with deep red being the most dominant, and her braided hair is in a simple bun.

“I will be driving,” Ayo announces, and it’s unclear to him if she was aware of the tension he felt or not, but all the same, he’s grateful for the abrupt, moody declaration.

“Sounds good.” He smiles at Shuri. “Ready?”

Returning the smile, she surprises him by linking her fingers through his.

They walk out, and when Ayo opens the back passenger door, Shuri tugs him in beside her.

Once the door shuts she lets go of his hand, but she stays pressed close to him until he says, “You’d better put your seatbelt on, your highness.”

Shuri starts to say something, he can see the sarcasm and potential teasing in her face, but in the driver’s seat, Ayo turns, and it’s clear from her expression that the car won’t be starting until Shuri complies.

Sighing, Shuri moves to do so. “I never believed my father or brother when they told me that Kings often have less freedom than others imagine.”

“You were one of the people who forced restrictions on T’Challa in order to protect him,” he points out.

“But I’m his sister. And a genius. I often did know what was better for him than he did.”

Ayo’s silence is nevertheless loud.

“It’ll be nice to have a greater focus on science in my life again.”

“I’m sure-”

The car stops. “We’re here, my queen.”

…

The restaurant is a quiet burger joint-slash-steakhouse, and they’re led to a cozy table in a corner while Ayo takes a small table near them.

“My companion is a vegetarian who doesn’t always know if something has unadvertised meat products. If she tries to order something that does, please, tell her,” Shuri says to the waitress sitting them.

“Will do, ma’am,” the waitress responds, and pulling a menu reading Our Vegan and Vegetarian Dishes from the stack she’s carrying, she hands it to Ayo before handing them regular menus and setting one of the Vegetarian ones on the table. “Do y’all know what you want to drink?”

He orders a beer, Shuri orders a hot tea and glass of milk, and when the drinks come out, he sees Ayo has ordered a water with lemon slices, and she doesn’t look happy she has to add them herself.

“She lost her love during the snap,” Shuri quietly says. “Now, Aneka is back, but- I grieved for my brother as best I could. Still, some part of me never quite let go of this hope, and now, I’m afraid, if death ever truly comes for him before it does me, I won’t be able to grieve him properly. Ayo never found love again in these last five years, but more-or-less, she made peace with Aneka being gone.”

“It’d be better if she’d spend time with Aneka. T’Challa, Okoye, and I have all strongly suggested she take some time away from the Dora Milaje to do so, but she refuses,” she finishes.

Glancing over, he feels a wave of sympathy for Ayo. He guesses this is one good thing about him being gone: No one greatly grieved him, and no one has to deal with the pain and potential guilt of him returning after they’d tried moving on from his absence.

More than Ayo, however, he’s tempted to squeeze Shuri’s hand, and he wishes he knew what to say. She was seventeen when she lost her brother, not long after they’d lost their father, and then, even before Thantos, she had to deal with Killmonger and drastic changes in her country’s place in the world. Losing her mother so soon after all this…

He’ll be the first to acknowledge her strength, but she shouldn’t have to be dealing with all this now, let alone when she was still a teenager.

“If I could do something to help, I would.”

She smiles. “I know. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a simple night out with someone other than family. It’s always diplomatic engagements or required public appearances. Do you want to hear some of the others things that have happened while you were gone?”

“That sounds great. Was it just my President you publicly humiliated?”

Even before the reproachful look crosses her face, he knows this was a stupid question.

Taking out her phone, she begins filling him in.

The waitress comes back. “I should have asked this in the beginning, sorry, but how should I do the ticket?”

“She and I,” looking at him, Shuri gestures to Ayo, “are together. Ross?”

He nods. “I’ll have my own ticket, please.”

“Got it, babes.” Scratching out something on the ticket, she gets out another. “Your companion’s already ordered, miss. Are you two ready?”

He orders a burger with fries, Shuri orders lamb chops with mashed potatoes and green beans, and after Ayo’s food comes out, he sees she’s ordered a grilled cheese with tomatoes and a garden salad.

After he’s finished his beer, he accepts the offer of complimentary coffee.

When the video of N’Yami ends, he says, “I hope I get to meet her someday.”

“You will,” she says. “Do you- Is there a certain time you need to get back to the building?”

“No. I have a meeting at nine, but I’m not restricted during my free time.”

“I’m staying at a hotel near here. Would you like to go there to talk some more?”

He knows Ayo will be thrilled by this, but it’ll be closing time soon, and he hasn’t felt this normal since before he found himself not in the briefing room. “I’d love that.” Looking at the tickets, he continues, “I wouldn’t mind-”

“I’m paying for mine and Ayo,” she firmly replies. “That being said, would you mind taking care of the tip? Or telling me how much I should put for her and I?”

“I’ve got it.” Withdrawing his wallet, he puts down 20% of their bills. “Ayo doesn’t need to leave any money on her table; the waitress will know it’s for all of us.”

“Thank you.”

…

A floor has been rented out for Shuri and the other Wakandans. At the entrance, a male guard and Dora Milaje salute Shuri before the former says, “He’ll need to be scanned for weapons, my queen.”

“And we’ll need to keep any communication devices until he leaves,” the woman adds.

Taking out his cell phone, he says, “I don’t have anything confidential on this, and I will have it thoroughly examined once I return to my job.”

Everyone but Shuri gives him an offended look, but after locking the phone up and scanning him, they don’t protest when Shuri leads him to her suite.

Inside, she gives him a vaguely apologetic look. “Take a seat. Would you like something to drink?”

“Do you have any sodas?”

“In the refrigerator. Help yourself.”

Finding his favourite brand of root beer, he gets one, and she makes herself some tea.

They sit down.

“Is there anything you’ve found yourself missing since you’ve gotten back?”

“The way I felt before the snap happened,” he finds himself answering. “I’ve always considered myself a realist who was cautiously optimistic, but before Thanos appeared, I was even more optimistic. Everything pointed to the world finally being a better place. I’d look at pictures of my niece, and I had hope she might grow up in a much better world than me and her father had.”

“Sorry,” he continues. “That-”

“You don’t need to apologise,” she calmly says. “No one has gotten through this without trauma.”

“That’s true, but I doubt you invited me out to play therapist.”

He half-expects a joke about therapy being one of her specialities, and if she told him she has some sort of degree in psychology, he’d believe her, but whether this is fair or not, he really can’t see her as an actual psychologist or psychiatrist.

“No, but no one’s going to get better, including you and me, if no one talks about it. My mother didn’t talk much after Thanos’ strike. She didn’t ignore me, she just became a much, much quieter person. Okoye, I know how much she worries about N’Yami, and so do I, but she still feels the need to protect me in some ways. And so, we don’t talk much about most of our worries.”

Touching her hand, he repeats, “I’m sorry.”

“I’m glad you’re back, Ross.”

“Thank you. I’m glad you weren’t taken. I imagine the world would be even worse if you had been.”

Smiling, there’s some sparkle to her eyes. “Obviously, it would have been.”

He laughs. “What are T’Challa’s non-confidential plans once he retakes the throne?”

“Hopefully, marriage. Other than that, he needs to meet all the new leaders, and he’ll be travelling a lot. I’m probably going to stay in Wakanda for a while.”

“Do you have anyone special in your life?”

Shaking her head, a wry smile crosses her face. “I don’t think marriage or even a very serious relationship is something that will ever be for me. I love being a godmother, and worrying about my family and country is enough. I don’t think there’s anyone worth investing all the time and worry and compromise that comes from a serious romantic commitment, and I’d rather be godmother and aunt than mother. I can spoil N’Yami and any children T’Challa has.”

A small part of him is sad due to how young she is, but mainly, he understands.

Raising his can, he says, “I hope wherever life takes you, you can be happy.”

She clinks her mug against it. “I hope you can get the feeling of optimism back again soon.”

They drink.

“So, what are some of the big scientific things you plan to work on once T’Challa is King again?”

“You wouldn’t understand,” is her light reply. “T’Challa is planning to have a press conference soon, and he’s going to be discussing-”

Being rude might get him kicked out, but he finds himself interrupting, “I’m sure you could break it down in small enough words that I could understand the gist of it. And I’ll be watching, if not attending, T’Challa’s press conference. I can find out what he plans to talk about, then.”

He’s not sure what to make of the look she gives him or the fact he had the feeling she was trying to steer the conversation away from her plans of scientific study due to a feeling he’d find them uninteresting.

“Well, as long as you don’t plan on visiting my lab,” she says. “Flying around, knocking things over.” She mockingly shakes her head, and before he can reiterate that was her fault for telling him to press the button, she continues, “Before Thanos, I wanted to start testing a potential new vaccine against HIV, but the council deemed the research posed too much of a risk to my health despite me explaining that...”

…

Glancing at his watch, he’s surprised to see how much time has passed.

“Are you ever going to let the world know what you really did to help the Avengers undo Thanos’ Strike?”

Swallowing the drink she just took, she looks at him inquisitively. “You doubt your own government’s official reports?”

“Well, of course, I do. I love my country, and I believe in all my government should be. That doesn’t mean I don’t know of the many, many ways and times it’s failed to live up to this. There’s skeletons I’ll never even know about.”

But still, new generations are often full of better people than the last. Someday, people without so many prejudices and insistence on upholding the status quo will rule, hopefully, America will truly be a land of freedom and opportunity for all, and unfortunately, he’ll be one of the shameful skeletons.

“You’ve never approved of the Avengers.”

“I’ve never agreed with SHIELD’s existence. And all of the original six, with the possible exception of Dr Banner, were loyal to SHIELD. I don’t know much about the Black Panther to have an opinion on you or your brother donning the mantle, but before Thanos, at least, neither of you were answering to SHIELD.”

“I didn’t after, either,” she responds with a cocky smile and sparkling eyes.

God, she’s so beautiful, and- “I should-”

Her hand is warm over his. “Would it be okay if I kissed you?”

If he were drugged, he wouldn’t be hearing things like this. He knows what typically happens when he’s drugged, and he knows Shuri enough to know, if she were going to drug someone, this would not be a side-effect of it.

Unfortunately, his normal conclusion when he finds himself in a bizarre situation beyond the typical insanity that occasionally comes with the job is either that he’s been drugged or non-Earthly forces have done something.

He doesn’t think he can handle the latter, and maybe, Dr Peters was right to keep him on the bench.

“Have I misread things?”

Snapping out of his spiral thoughts, he takes a breath. “I might have.”

All night, he’s been falling for this gorgeous, funny, slightly terrifying woman, but he hadn’t let himself believe she might be showing signs of anything beyond friendly interest.

“Believe it or not, I did miss you, Ross. I understand you’re pretty much the same person you were the last time we met, but I’ve changed. And while I don’t want a relationship with anyone right now, least of all a white official of the United States government, I’ve had a nice time tonight, and if you don’t object, I’d like to kiss you.”

He knows the best thing to do would be to politely leave. There are so many ways doing anything else could cause numerous issues, not just for him, in the future.

If he does anything else, he can’t blame the consequences on anything besides himself. He’s not drugged, the one beer he had hours ago didn’t even get him tipsy, let alone drunk, and for all he’s a CIA agent and she’s a foreign leader- right now, he desperately wants for them to just be two friends with an attraction sitting in a hotel room.

Him wanting this is probably the biggest problem and reason why he should politely leave.

“I’d like that.” At her look, he clarifies, “For you to kiss me.”

A beautiful grin breaks out across her face, and then, she’s settling down in his lap.

The taste and feel of her is wonderful, and he’s almost overwhelmed by the heat and smell of her in such close proximity.

He doesn’t know how long they kiss, but she pulls away, it feels too short.

Standing up, she reaches behind her, and then, her dress hits the floor, and if he thought she was beautiful before-

She re-settles on his lap. “You can touch me however and wherever you want. If I don’t like something, I’ll tell you.”

He nods. “The same goes for me.”

They continue kissing, more clothes come off, and then, her hands pause at undoing his belt.

If she’s realised this is a bad idea or this is just too far, he hopes she’s not going to blame him for it getting this far. And that she’ll let him use the bathroom before he leaves.

“Contraception- I have something similar to your American IUDs, but I still think it would be best if you used a condom. All I have are sheepskin ones,” and based on the flash of expression on her face, he has a feeling another sexual partner might have made a racist joke or comment, and if he’s right, well, they were an absolute idiot, “but there’s a 24/7 store around here with latex and polyurethane ones.”

Settling a hand on her back, he assures her, “As long as they fit, sheepskin is fine.”

“I have several different sizes. But,” she resumes undoing his belt, “we’re not quite there yet.”

He agrees. There’s something he wants to try that he’s really hoping she’ll like before they get to that point.

...

He finds himself starting to doze off, and he realises they didn’t discuss whether he’d be leaving afterwards or not.

Shifting, she curls up against him. “Sleep here.”

Years ago, more years than it seems to him, he ended up falling asleep in bed with a half-dressed seventeen-year-old runaway princess, and it was completely innocent, but now- there’s something strangely amusing about this, but repressing his laugh, he snakes an arm underneath her to pull her closer.

…

In the morning, he wakes as she’s sitting up.

“Good morning.” Leaning down, she kisses him.

“Good morning.” Carefully sitting up, he’s aware he didn’t used to have this slight stiffness to his joints and that it will be a long time before she faces such an occurrence. “Would it be okay if I used your shower before I left?”

“Yes. There’s an unopened toothbrush and toothpaste in there. Would you like to have breakfast, too, before you go?”

“That would be wonderful.”

She smiles, and it hits him, until last night, he’s never seen such a soft smile on her face.

…

Along with the toothbrush, he finds an unopened tube of his brand of toothpaste, and he finds himself wondering if this along with his preferred brand of root bear means-

Shaking the thoughts away, he decides he’ll try to analyse all this later.

After getting ready, he and Shuri go down to the hotel’s dining room, and though her Wakandan companions are clearly wary of his presence, he’s surprised at the lack of clear disapproval or anger coming from them.

Once they’re finished, his phone is given back. “Queen Shuri cannot accompany you back to work. I’ve taken the liberty of calling a cab for you,” he’s told.

Something about the way the man says ‘work’ makes him feel compelled to respond, “I didn’t exactly choose to live there, you know. My old apartment was leased out while I was gone, and I don’t have any family I can stay with until I find a new one.”

To his surprise, the man actually looks vaguely apologetic, though, an amused Shuri pulls him away before either of them can say anything else. “Come on, Ross, I’ll wait with you until the cab arrives.”

Outside, she links her fingers through his. “Thank you for last night. It was nice.”

“It was for me, too. It’s been nice seeing you, Shuri. I hope I get to see you before you leave, but if not, take care of yourself, alright?”

His cab arrives, and opening the door, she nods with a smile. “I will. You need to be told that more than I do.”

“Fair enough.”

…

When he arrives back to the office, he has a feeling he’s being watched even more closely.

What he did wasn’t wrong, but a case for inappropriate could be made.

He decides, if this happens, it happens.

After getting his phone checked, he changes into fresh clothes, starts on his paperwork, attends meetings, and slowly, the feeling of being watched starts to fade.

…

A few days later, there’s a knock on his door. “Agent Ross, Queen Shuri is here to see you before she leaves for Wakanda.”

They go outside, and he suddenly has a feeling of being scrutinised by unseen eyes.

“Queen Shuri,” he greets.

“Agent Ross. Don’t make too many new enemies now that you’re back.”

“And deprive you of one of your favourite Non-Wakandan torture subjects? I’d never.”

She laughs. “Good.” Then, she kisses his cheek. “And work on your arrogance. What makes you think you’re one of my favourites?” Stepping back, she grins at him.

Laughing, he nods. “Well, it seems, at least, most of my colleagues don’t have the special bond we have. Uh, in all seriousness, please, give your brother my best regards.”

“I will.” She says her goodbyes to his boss, and then, with one last smile at him, she turns to leave.

Clicking his heels, he stands at attention until they’re gone.

As they head back in, his boss says, “Agent Ross, I know this isn’t what you’ve been hoping for, but Agents Yew and Adams could use a fresh pair of eyes to go over their planned assignment before they deploy.”

“I’m happy to take a more active role in any way I can, ma’am. Yew and Adams are doing an extraction in Russia?”

She hands him a file. “That was the original plan, but it might be possible to meet the contact in Ukraine, and if so...”


End file.
